Students of Konoha High: First Year(UPDATED)
by The Ramen Club
Summary: Welcome to Konoha High, a magical place where dreams become reality. Scratch that! It is full time high school madness with messy breakups, strange teachers, popularity contests, and pure unadulterated randomness! Enjoy your visit.
1. First Days Are Such A Drag

**Author's note:** This is the updated version of the story I had previously published, but had to take down due to certain reasons which I cannot disclose... Anyway, this is part 1 of the story which will deal with the events that happen in the first year of high school.

**DISCLAIMER:** I DO NOT OWN NARUTO!

* * *

**First Days Are Such a Drag**

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It is the first day for our heroes at Konoha High, and Naruto is already having trouble keeping his parents at bay before the first bell could even ring.

"Oh I can't believe our little boy is going to high school!" Kushina says with glee, while hugging Naruto a little too tight.

"Mom, stop it! You're embarrassing me!" cries Naruto in exasperation, struggling to get out of his mother's grip.

"Son, it has been our job to embarrass you since the day you were born", says Minato, flashing a smile at his son with a thumbs up.

More students are gathering outside the school entrance now.

"Well you sure are doing a good job at it. Look, Sasuke is standing right there with his super cool brother and I don't wanna look like a complete loser in front of them."

"Naruto, you are not a loser!" Kushina says matter-of-factly.

Minato grabs a random student passing by and starts talking to him.

"Hey son! Let me tell you the importance of being me- the mayor of this fine city."

"Get away from me you freak!" The student yells and runs away.

"GUYS!" Naruto was ready to blow his top. He inherited that trait from his dear mother.

"Fine. Let's go Minato. We don't want to embarrass our son anymore. Oh! You have something on your face Naruto. Let me get that for you", Kushina licks her thumb and vigorously rubs it on his face.

"Stop it! STOP IT!" Naruto fumes, wiping his cheek.

"All done!" Kushina exclaims happily with a clap.

"Good luck son!" Minato flashes another set of teeth at his now aggravated son.

* * *

Sasuke and Itachi, the latter who is all suited up for his little brother's big day, are standing in front of the information booth situated right outside the main entrance.

"Do you really have to be here?" Sasuke mutters to his brother with a scowl. Girls pass by gawking at Itachi, followed by chirpy giggles. Sasuke rolls his eyes.

"Of course I do", Itachi replies. "It's your first day of high school and I wouldn't miss it for the world. I'm your guardian and brother Sasuke."

"You know as well as I do that I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself."

"Of course."

"Then you can leave!"

"Not until you get your schedule."

More girls pass by staring at Itachi in awe, and not giving Sasuke even a glance.

"You're enjoying this aren't you?" asks Sasuke sceptically.

"... Maybe..."

* * *

"So I decided to do something radical with my hair over the summer and dyed it pink! No longer will people know me as just Sakura the Nerd! What do you think?" Sakura is sporting a pink choppy hairstyle instead of her usual long brunette locks.

"I must say, it really brings out your eye colour", Ino contemplates. "Although, people might just start calling you Sakura the Hispter." She starts laughing hysterically.

"Laugh all you want, but someday I will become the most popular girl in school and you'll be my assistant."

The blonde simply rolls her eyes at her friend's fantasies.

"Oh my gosh, it's Sasuke", the two notice the Uchiha boys standing near the information booth. Sasuke is in his usual emo mode. Sakura waves at him. He gives a small wave back which is barely noticeable.

"Oh my God he waved back at me", Sakura starts slapping Ino's arm in excitement.

"No way!" Ino retorts. "He was totally looking my way! He was waving at me."

"Stop lying Ino pig!"

"You better watch your mouth billboard brow!"

And an angry-glare, teeth-clenching contest ensues between them.

* * *

Shikaku pulls up the family's old station wagon in front of the school building.

"Alright Shikamaru, we're here", Yoshino announces.

"Ah this takes me back to the good old days", Shikaku reminisces with a smile.

"Shikamaru?" Yoshino turns to the backseat to find her son fast asleep and snoring. She scowls.

"Huh, I thought he'd actually be a little excited for today", says Shikaku.

Yoshino throws Shikamaru out of the car and he hits the pavement.

"Ow!" he cries rubbing his butt. "Hey what about my backpack?"

Yoshino throws the backpack in his face.

* * *

Kiba, Akamaru, and Shino arrive in front of the campus.

"Well, this is it", says Kiba, tugging at the straps of his backpack. "Are you ready?"

"Not really", Shino replies.

"I was talking to Akamaru."

"As if they would let a dog enter school premises."

"Oh? And you think they would let your bug collection in?" Kiba points at the glass box Shino is holding in his arms, containing ants.

"Of course they will. The study of these rare Himalayan ants will help in the better understanding of our biology course. Akamaru will just create a mess."

"No way! Akamaru is totally useful."

In the background, Tenten is dragging a huge bag full of sports equipment from her car to the main entrance.

"For what?" asks Shino.

"Attacking people." Kiba replies confidently.

"I pity you and your IQ level of 5."

* * *

For the Sand Siblings, this is probably the worst day of their lives.

"I can't believe Dad lost his mayor seat because of that stupid scandal and now we have to go to school here", says Temari, looking at the building with disgust.

"Who knows", Kankuro adds. "Maybe you'll get a boyfriend here and will leave us alone!"

The two start pushing and shoving each other, until Gaara interjects.

"Keep that up, and I won't associate with either of you."

"Sorry Gaara", they say in unison.

* * *

Lee steps out of his car, inhaling the fresh air.

"Ah what a beautiful morning", he exclaims joyfully. "Today is going to be a great day!"

Suddenly, a flying football comes out of nowhere and hits him on the head, knocking him down.

"Still-so-beautiful", he whimpers with his face touching the ground.

* * *

Hinata listens intently to her father's words of wisdom before she could enter the white washed building.

"Be a good girl and try not to be too clumsy", says Hiashi sternly.

"Yes Father", Hinata obliges.

"And try not to embarrass your cousin Neji."

"I won't Father."

"He works very hard for a perfect record. I don't want you messing it up for him."

"Father, I promised myself over the summer that I will be a new me, a better me. And I have been working very hard as well. I promise, I will not let you down."

With that Hinata turns around to walk towards the school, but then trips and falls face flat on the pavement. Hiashi simply sighs with shame and drives away.


	2. Get On The Bandwagon

**Author's note: **In light of the incredible Naruto manga chapter this week, I decided to publish the 2nd chapter earlier than I had originally planned. Thank you for your reviews and happy reading!

**DISCLAIMER:** I DO NOT OWN NARUTO! IT BELONGS TO MASASHI KISHIMOTO!

**Get On The Bandwagon**

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The school halls are crowded with all the first year students lining up in front of stalls of various clubs and teams that could possibly make them feel like they belong, and could feed their self-esteem. Shikamaru is carrying a bunch of pamphlets that were shoved into his hands by eager seniors looking for freshmen meat to mess with. He couldn't care less about any of the clubs. Choji comes jogging to his best friend happily, making the ground shake beneath his feet with each jog.

"Look at all this", Shikamaru says, showing all the pamphlets to Choji. "The first day hasn't even started yet and they're already shoving pointless stuff down our throats. I mean, who cares about extra-curricular activities. It's all such a pain in the ass man."

"I don't know", Choji comments. "Some of them actually sound like fun. I signed up for the Home Economics Club!"

"But Choji, you can't cook", Shikamaru says, sounding a little worried.

"That may be, but it's where I can eat my mess as well as everybody else's mess. Win-win!" Choji grins at him with his chubby cheeks protruding at each corner of his mouth like a chipmunk's.

Shikamaru smiles and slings an arm around his friend's fat neck.

"Come on buddy", he says. "Let's go check out the boys' common room. Hopefully they'll have a nice sofa I can take naps on."

"Ooo and maybe even a mini fridge", Choji adds.

* * *

"I am going to sign up for every female sports team there is", Tenten is already showing her feminist streak as Hinata walks closely beside her, careful not to bump into any of the big kids.

"Are you sure about that Tenten?" she asks. "Won't you just burden yourself?"

"Nah! Look, in grades I can't get past a B-, and I'm not even going to try. So, I am solely relying on a sports scholarship to a good university."

"I see", Hinata ponders.

"So are you going to sign up for anything Hinata?"

"No I-"

She is interrupted by the hollering of a group of cheerleaders, doing handstands and flips as part of a demonstration.

"If there's one sport I don't believe in and will never sign up for, it's cheerleading", Tenten says with annoyance.

"Why not?"

"Only a bunch of airheads sign up for it. Their purpose in life is to make other people, who are not as popular as them, feel terrible about themselves, and they spend their free times either getting unnecessary mani-pedis or feeling the muscles of athletic dudes."

"Out of my way! I have to sign up for cheerleading!" Ino rushes past them, pushing Tenten aside.

"Exhibit A", Tenten says to Hinata, gesturing at Ino.

* * *

Ino slams her hand on the table of the cheerleading stall.

"Sign me up, bitches!" She exclaims.

A girl with messy red hair and glasses looks up at her with a weary expression.

"Name?" she inquires, uninterested.

"Ino Yamanaka."

"Age?"

"15."

"Favourite band?"

"One Direction."

"Favourite movie?"

"Clueless."

"Favourite make-up brand?"

"Revlon."

"Are you just going to keep asking her random questions?" Sakura interrupts.

"Sakura shh!" replies Ino.

"Let's take her measurements, girls", the red-head commands.

"My what?" Ino blurts.

The rest of the cheerleaders start measuring her height, waist, hips, and thighs. Their leader notes the results down and examines them.

"Sorry, you can't be a member of the squad", she concludes.

"WHAT!" Ino shrieks. "WHY NOT?!"

"Well for starters, you have terrible taste in music."

"Ex-c-use me?"

"And you don't have the figure we are looking for. For instance, you have belly fat."

"And you have bed hair, bad breath, and glasses not even my grandmother would be caught dead wearing."

"Next!"

"What do you mean 'next'? I am not done here!"

"NEXT!"

"I DEMAND TO BE PUT IN THIS SQUAD!"

"Come on Ino. It's no use. Let's just go", Sakura takes Ino's arm and starts dragging her away from the stall.

"THIS ISN'T OVER! YOU HERE ME!" Ino yells.

* * *

Temari had only one club in mind that she wanted to join.

She makes a dramatic entrance in the Girls Judo Club, opening the double doors with a smug look on her face.

"Hello losers", she announces. The girls stop whatever they're doing and just stare at her.

"I'm going to beat the crap out of all of you."

* * *

Ino is sitting on one of the bleachers in the main ground, crying her eyes out; her mascara running down her cheeks.

"Ino, please stop crying", Sakura consoles her while rubbing her shoulder gently. "You don't need cheerleading."

"But my mom was a cheerleader, and my grandma was a cheerleader, and my great grandma was a cheerleader," she speaks between her sobs. "It's a Yamanaka females' tradition. How will I show my face to my mother now?"

"We don't need any club to showcase our talent. We are strong, beautiful, independent girls and", Sakura stands up on the bleachers; "we do not need anyone telling us what to do!"

Ino wipes her eyes and smiles at her.

A random student in a business suit approaches them.

"Hey you're really good at giving empowering speeches", he says to Sakura.

"I am?" she blushes.

"Sure. How would you like to sign up for our school's debate team?"

"I'd love to!" Sakura starts signing her name on a sheet. "Sorry Ino, you're on your own."

Ino stares at her in disbelief with her mouth hanging open.

* * *

"Naruto, did you really sign up for everything I signed up for?" Sasuke inquires.

"You bet!" says Naruto confidently. "And just you wait. I'm gonna beat you in all those clubs!"

"Oh I don't really care much about the clubs. I care about basketball."

"Basketball huh?" Naruto starts fantasising about being surrounded by cheerleaders praising him, "Oh Naruto you are so tall and handsome and you totally kicked Sasuke's butt!" When the fantasy is over, he says: "Basketball sounds like fun!"

Sasuke does a facepalm.


	3. Spandex and Ski Masks Galore

**AUTHOR'S NOTE: **This is the last chapter based on their first day. From the next chapter, it will just be spontaneous.

**DISCLAIMER:** I DO NOT OWN NARUTO!

* * *

**Spandex and Ski Masks Galore**

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**.**

**.**

After selecting the extracurricular activities of their choice, the students proceed to the first class on their schedule.

**FIRST PERIOD: HOMEROOM**

Naruto and Kiba are playing paper football while Sakura and Ino are loudly chatting away about things nobody else cares about.

"Homeroom is such a drag", Shikamaru sighs.

"You think everything is a drag", Sakura jeers at him.

"That's because everything IS a drag! Including you", he mutters the last statement under his breath. Though Sakura was as girly as Ino, she was scarier than her and could easily give people nightmares about her freakishly large forehead coming to attack them.

Gaara, Kankuro, and Temari, the exchange students from Suna, arrive at the classroom. They scan the place, hoping to spot any familiar faces who wouldn't give them a hard time.

"Oh hey Gaara! Gaara!" Naruto calls out from his seat, waving at them.

Gaara takes notice and he and his siblings walk over to where he is sitting.

"Guys, this is my friend Gaara and his brother Kankuro and sister Temari", Naruto introduces to the rest of his gang. "They have moved here from Suna. Their dad is good friends with my dad but his dad had to-"

"Nobody needs to hear the whole story!" Temari barks at him.

"Right, sorry", Naruto apologises sheepishly. "Anyway, they will be attending school with us from now on."

"Yay", Kankuro says apathetically.

Sakura gets up to greet them, and starts talking like a tour guide- slowly and enunciating every word.

"Hi-welcome-to-Konoha. It-is-very-nice-to-meet-you."

Temari and Kankuro give her a scrutinizing glare.

"Why is Pinky talking to us like that?" Temari asks her younger brother.

"I think the dye is affecting her brain", he whispers but loud enough for Sakura to hear. Ino cackles while her friend, who is now mortified and speechless, takes her seat and places her head on the desk to sulk.

"Great! So we're all chummy now," Naruto declares. "That means you guys can hang out with us."

"Ah no thanks", says Kankuro. "We fly solo. See ya!" They proceed to take up seats at the very back of the classroom.

"I wonder where the teacher is", muses Sasuke.

"Yeah me too", Ino agrees nodding. "What do you think Sakura?"

"DON'T TALK TO ME!" Sakura wails, not lifting her head up from her desk.

* * *

**20 MINUTES LATER**

A tall lanky teacher, who seems too young to have a full head of grey hair, enters the classroom. All the students quiet down immediately.

"Sorry I'm late class", he says in a low voice that is somewhat polite yet menacing at the same time. "I was caught up in rescuing a kitten from a tree."

"Oh my gosh he's actually hot!" Ino squeals.

Naruto suddenly gets up from his chair.

"Hey what's the big idea?" he shouts pointing at the man. "Do you have any clue how long we had been waiting?"

"Naruto, stop being such a loser", Kiba intervenes, irritated.

"Seriously dude just sit down", Shikamaru whispers. "You're gonna get us all in trouble."

"Why is he wearing a ski mask?" Tenten comments out of nowhere.

"Great", Kakashi groans loud enough for everyone to hear. "I had to get stuck with a class full of morons."

"Who are you calling morons!" Sakura fumes, forgetting all about her hair crisis.

"Sit down and shut up", Kakashi booms.

Naruto and Sakura plunk down on their chairs without speaking another word.

The man starts pacing about the classroom: "My name is Kakshi Hatake and I will be your homeroom teacher and your Maths teacher. Now I'm sure you all must have received your class schedule. Make sure you're on time to all your classes and stay out of trouble. It is your first year after all. I better not hear any complains", he threatens them with an intimidating glare which makes all the students gulp in fear, sending shudders down their spines.

* * *

**AFTER HOMEROOM**

"Man that was one scary guy" says Kiba.

"He was so cool!" Ino chirps.

"He seemed like a sharp man", Sasuke ponders. "Like he would know our every move."

"That sounds really creepy", admits Naruto.

"So nobody noticed the ski mask?" Tenten interrupts. "It's the middle of September!"

The rest completely ignore her and proceed to gym class.

* * *

**GYM CLASS**

"Alright my youthful students!" a tall dark man in a green spandex jumpsuit bellows. "My name is Gai but people call me Might Guy and you can call me that too! But the school board likes it when teachers are referred to as 'sensei' so call me Gai Sensei and I will shape you all into strong, powerful men!" and while he's introducing himself, Gai does a couple of weird fitness poses. All students, except the awestruck Lee, have an eye twitch.

"Um but there are girls here as well", Tenten pipes confused.

Gai points at her. "You! I like your attitude! You stand up for things! How youthful!

Tenten looks incredulously at him.

"This guy is really extreme", she whispers to Neji who nods in affirmation.

Lee stands up and salutes Gai.

"Gai sensei! My name is Rock Lee and I am looking forward to your training program!"

Gai stares at him. He is overwhelmed with such joy that he starts crying. He clasps Lee's shoulder: "You my boy have the power of youth burning inside of you! It's so beautiful!"

"Thank you Gai sensei sir!" At this point Lee starts crying as well.

"Now my youngsters", he addresses the rest of his now utterly bewildered and disturbed class. "Since this is your first day I will go a little easy on you. So, give me 100 laps around the field!"

Everyone except lee: "WHAAAAAAAATTTTT!"

* * *

After running 100 laps of pure unadulterated torture, our heroes are ready to face the rest of the day with enthusiasm.

"I-can't-feel-my-back!" Sakura pants.

"I haven't done this much exercise since... FOREVER!" cries Choji.

"I think my legs are going to fall apart!" Ino whines.

"Come on my friends", Lee says while jogging about them. "It was an amazing work out! Gai sensei is so inspiring and motivating! And so fit and handsome! I want to be just like him!"

"Lee, please stop talking" mutters Tenten.

"Yeah don't make me hurt you", Ino threatens, glaring at Lee.

"My insides are on fire!" fusses Naruto, gripping at his tummy.

"I'm completely fine." Sasuke remarks nonchalantly, his hands dug in pockets.

"Oh yeah? Well me too! In fact I've never been better! I can really feel the youth burning in me like Gai sensei said-"

"SHUT UP YOU IDIOT!" Sakura punches Naruto straight in the face, sending him flying across the field.


	4. A Tough Battle- Naruto vs Sasuke

**DISCLAIMER: **I DO NOT OWN NARUTO!

* * *

**A Tough B****attle- Naruto vs.**** Sasuke!**

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After Iruka sensei finishes his lecture on cell structure and function, he orders everyone to remain seated.

"I have your test scores for the introductory test I took last week", he announces, holding up a stack of papers in his hand. "Although the scores will not be included in your overall, how well you did on the test determines how well you will do in Biology throughout the year."

The atmosphere of the classroom suddenly becomes a little tense as each student anticipates his or her result. Iruka goes row by row handing out the papers.

"Ino, good job. You have the second highest score tied with Sakura." Ino starts bouncing in her seat with joy and grins at Sakura, who gives her a slight smile.

"So much for getting the highest", Sakura mutters to herself.

"Kiba, you have to improve your handwriting. I could barely understand a word", Iruka hands Kiba his paper, which he starts folding into a paper plane.

"Gaara I don't know why but there was a lot of sand on your paper." Gaara doesn't respond and looks straight ahead with his arms crossed. He doesn't even touch his paper.

"Shikamaru, you just wrote one line for every answer. But I still gave you the marks." Shikamaru looks down at his paper and yawns.

"Troublesome", he groans.

Iruka arrives at Sasuke's desk: "Sasuke, you gave the best test in the entire class", he beams at the raven haired student. "Every answer was perfect and to the point. And so I gave you the highest marks." Everybody claps for Sasuke's achievement, who is pretty nonchalant about it.

Iruka approaches Naruto's desk with a look of disappointment. "Naruto, you had the worst score in the entire class. You failed!"

"EHHH?" shrieks Naruto and scans his paper to see red pen marks everywhere. "But-but Iruka sensei..."

"No buts Naruto. You need to pull your act together and start studying or you won't be able to pass biology this year." Naruto glances at Sasuke from the corner of his eye. The latter has a pretty smug look on his face. The blond grits his teeth and swears under his breath.

* * *

**AT BASKETBALL PRACTICE**

"I'm open! I'm open!" Naruto shouts to Sasuke while flailing his arms. Sasuke effortlessly manoeuvres around the opposing team members while dribbling the ball. Only 5 seconds are left on the clock. He ignores Naruto, jumps and throws the ball aiming for the basket. The ball goes through the net after making a few turns around the rim of the basket, and the buzzer goes off. His team-mates praise him for a great game while Naruto is left steaming with rage in a corner.

* * *

At lunchtime, while the rest of the gang are having a heated argument about the possible reasons for Kakashi wearing a mask, Naruto and Sasuke are having their own little competition- who can finish their meal first. Sasuke is shoving spoonfuls of his salad with one hand while holding a bran muffin in the other and taking large bites out of it. Naruto is gulping down his bowl of soup and then drinking milk till the tiny carton folds inward with his sucking force.

"FINISHED!" They announce in unison, glaring at each other. In a matter of seconds, they both throw up on the floor.

"Don't eat so fast if you're gonna puke it all up!" Sakura scolds them.

Naruto wipes his mouth. "I will beat you Sasuke. I promise."

"Fat chance knuckle-head", he replies panting.

* * *

At night, Naruto stares up at the ceiling while lying in bed, thinking of ways he could possibly beat Sasuke. Ever since kindergarten he's been living in his shadow, that he can never beat him at anything no matter how hard he tried. Even Sakura was obsessed with him along with every other girl and that really ticked him off. He tosses and turns trying to rack his brain cells to come up with something that he could out-do Sasuke in. His dream to become the mayor will never come true if he can't be the best at atleast one thing. Eventually, sleep takes over him and he delays the thoughts for the next morning.

* * *

The next day at school, as Naruto is aimlessly walking down the hallways while looking at his feet, he bumps into someone. That someone is Hinata, who is now kneeling down on the floor gathering her fallen books and papers.

"Oh I'm so sorry Hinata!"Naruto quickly apologises kneeling down as well. "Let me help you with that."

"Uh no that's okay", Hinata says meekly without giving Naruto a glance. She can feel the heat rising to her cheeks and her heart beating fast.

"Sorry I didn't see you. I guess I was just lost in my own thoughts", says Naruto while collecting Hinata's papers. The shy girl looks up at him and blushes. She notices that Naruto is not his usual hyperactive self- the self that made her fall in love with him years ago.

"Is there something wrong?" she pipes. Naruto locks eyes with her and she immediately averts her gaze to the polished floor, mentally admiring it's sheen.

"Not really", Naruto sighs. While picking up the books, he comes across one that piques his interest- "A Beginners Guide to Magic".

He starts examining it, flipping through the pages.

"Hinata you're into magic?" The question catches her off guard and she jumps a little before nervously pulling a loose strand of hair behind her ear.

"Um, well", she stutters fiddling her fingers. "I like reading about different things. Sometimes I read knitting magazines and sometimes I read books about aeroplanes. This week I am reading books on magicians." She smoothes the creases in her burgundy skirt. "I've always liked magic", she adds after a long pause.

"That's so cool", Naruto says in a sort of daze. Hinata blushes again and quickly gathers all her items in her arms. Naruto gives her the rest of the things except for the magic book.

"Hey Hinata, would it be okay if I borrow this for the day? I'll give it back to you tomorrow."

Hinata nods her head vigorously, unable to have the words spill out of her mouth.

"Thanks!" Naruto gets up and dashes away, leaving her still kneeling on the floor. She sighs at her missed chance of having a proper conversation with him.

* * *

After school, Naruto locks himself in his room and goes through the book hoping to find some nifty magic trick that could amaze everyone at school. There were many tricks to choose from- mind reading, card levitation, vanishing coin, tricks with money and coins, the cut and restored string, etcetera. In the end, Naruto decides to do the simple handcuff trick. He visits a magic shop at the local mall and buys a packet of silver handcuffs for ¥300. He spends the rest of the day practising the trick with his orange stuffed toad toy Gamabunta. By 2 a.m. he succeeds in learning the trick and goes to sleep, dreaming about being more popular than Sasuke.

* * *

Carrying a brown paper bag containing the handcuffs, Naruto jogs to his friend circle gathered in the school's main ground. He bitterly gives Sasuke a glance but then turns to address everyone else sitting there.

"I have something really cool to show you guys!" he exclaims happily.

"Is it a dead cat?" Kiba inquires. Naruto makes a disgusted face at him.

"No... It's a trick I want to show you. I learned it yesterday. I'm really into this magic stuff."

"Oo I like magic!" Ino comments, beaming.

"Me too. I think it is a very youthful and pleasurable thing!" adds Lee.

"Okay! But I will need a volunteer." Naruto takes out the handcuffs from the bag.

"Uh those are handcuffs", Sasuke says pointedly.

"Well yes Captain DUH! And thank you for volunteering!" Naruto grabs Sasuke's wrist before he even has time to retort and puts one cuff on it and the other on his own wrist, binding the two together.

"Alright, now there's no way we can get out of these right?" Naruto announces jangling the piece of metal and pulling at it. Sasuke only grunts. "Now watch, as the Great Uzumaki works his magic and unlocks these cuffs!" He does a strange elaborate hand gesture in front of the lock and then pulls with a "Tada!". Unfortunately, nothing happens. Naruto is taken aback and does the gesture again. Nothing. He starts sweating nervously as Sasuke's glare is bores into him.

"Naruto, just use the key", Sakura suggests. Naruto starts fumbling inside his blazer's pocket. Nothing. Then he starts digging in both his pants pockets. Nothing. He jiggles the paper bag upside down. Still nothing. He rummages through his backpack, Sasuke's hand going along with his actions. Nada.

"What did you do?" Sasuke seethes.

* * *

"My dad said he can get a copy of the key from the shop during his lunch hour", Naruto tells Sasuke after getting off the phone.

"When does his lunch hour start?" asks Sasuke.

Naruto rubs the back of his neck sheepishly. "At 1.00."

Sasuke scowls at him. "You idiot! Look what you've done now?"

"Hey it's not my fault they didn't give the key!" Naruto retorts.

"Why the hell would you even perform that magic trick in the first place?"

"Because it looked cool!"

Sasuke slaps his forehead in frustration. "Well what are we supposed to do till then?"

They both dreaded the answer. This was not going to go well.

* * *

Here's a breakdown of how their day really went:

9.45 a.m.- Sasuke raised his hand to answer Kurenai sensei's question in class, but because his hand was attached to Naruto's, Kurenai made the latter answer instead.

10.30 a.m- At basketball practice, Naruto and Sasuke were made to sit on the bench throughout because they couldn't stop arguing and hitting each other.

11.20 a.m- Sasuke was swarmed by fangirls and Naruto was shoved and elbowed so many times by them that he had bruises.

12.35 p.m- Naruto tried looking at Sasuke's test paper for answers but was caught. Both were gracefully rewarded with a 5 mark deduction from Asuma sensei.

* * *

Naruto and Sasuke crash on to the bleachers after a hectic day of staying in each other's company longer than either of them could bear.

"This is all your fault", Sasuke mutters.

"Would you stop saying that?" Naruto cries in exasperation. "You're just as much to blame for this."

"How so?" Sasuke snaps at him.

"If you didn't keep trying to show me off, none of this would have happened."

"Hey I'm just doing my best, alright? It's not my problem if you're such a dimwit."

"I can't even beat you in one single thing! Nobody even notices me here. Everyone just can't stop fawning over you! Do you know what it's like to be living in your freaking shadow all the time?"

Sasuke's face turns solemn and he looks down at his feet for a relatively long time. Naruto just stares.

"Actually I do", the raven-haired boy speaks in a low voice. "I've been living in my brother's shadow all my life. Even my parents always favoured him over me. When I started Konoha High, all the teachers called me Itachi's little brother for a whole week. They probably expect me to be just as brilliant as him." Naruto is slightly alarmed by this other side of Sasuke's personality.

Sasuke's hand clenches into a fist until his knuckles turn white. "You have no idea what it's like to have an over achieving brother you can't even match up to", he says through gritted teeth. "Atleast you have parents who encourage you to be yourself. Atleast you can be an individual! I can't do any of that!"

There is complete silence between them.

"Well that's one thing we have in common", Naruto finally speaks, a smile creeping on his face. "We both just want to be acknowledged for who we are." Sasuke opens his mouth to say something but is interrupted by someone calling them out. It is Sakura and she is running towards them, with Minato following closely behind.

"I knew you two would be here", she says slightly breathless.

"Naruto I got the key", Minato adresses his son and hands him the key to his freedom. Naruto takes it and inserts it in the lock, turning it. The handcuffs open and fall to the ground. The boys rub their wrists which now have red marks around them.

"Finally", Naruto declares. "I was getting tired of being stuck with this bozo!"

"Speak for yourself, knucklehead", barks Sasuke.

"Wanna have a race around the field?"

"You're on!" And without another word the two dart off, leaving Sakura and Minato momentarily confused and speechless.


End file.
